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Practicing yoga gives me the much-needed quality me-time to stay centred and renewed. Share an Instagram photo of yourself enjoying some me-time and you could win one of 20 spots together with me on 12 February (next Thursday) at a Pure Yoga Universal class led by Copper Crow at 7:30PM, at Pure Yoga Ngee Ann City.

I look forward to trying this specialised style of yoga, which is a balance between strength and flexibility, while offering special techniques for focus, awareness and coordination. The 20 winners will also receive a complimentary 7-day pass at Pure Yoga after the session. Make sure you tag #puremetime @pureyogaofficial @fayhokulani when you submit your posts to qualify.

I look forward to your Instagram posts!

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Five years ago, I attended my first yoga class on a ‘hot date’ with Charles. He initiated the idea since he had a couple of trial passes to a 90-minute Bikram yoga class. We had just started dating and we were very keen on trying something new together…

I must admit that I didn’t fall in love with yoga immediately. In fact, I felt a little intimidated by it.

Thirty minutes into the class, I started to feel light-headed and had to lie on my mat in a child’s pose (aka balasana). Charles’s mat was soaked with sweat; he had to get another towel. His biggest struggle was maintaining his balance while trying to stretch his stiff muscles. But doing yoga is not about having a flexible body, it’s about working with your body. We knew this. But still. Bikram Yoga was haaaaaard. I thought I was going to pass out.

I was willing to give it another shot, in a non-heated room at least. Yoga wasn’t really Charles’s thing, but we trained together in the gym and played sports instead. I started getting into weight training which eventually led me into taking up a personal training course.

I wanted to work on my flexibility and soon found myself in another yoga class. And another. I continued to take classes sporadically over the years while doing my self-practice at home. I fell in love with it.

Simultaneously, I began transitioning away from occasional yo-yo dieting and strict workout plans focused on some number on the scale to a mentality of self-care and mindfulness.

Yoga taught me not to be so hard on myself in so many ways. It has given me an entirely different relationship with my body, where I judge it by what it can do, rather than its shape.

I thought about doing Yoga Teacher Training for a while… I want to immerse myself in all aspects of yoga. I want to understand correct alignment, the history and philosophy of yoga, and deepen my meditation practice. I explored various possibilities on when and where I could do the teacher training.

If the circumstances weren’t right, I was fine to put it on hold. Perhaps it was a sign that I wasn’t ready?

Then, a week before Christmas, I found out that Pure Yoga was doing a teacher training on the ‘Roots of Hatha Yoga‘ between January until March.The timing is right for me. I decided to go for it!

Hatha Yoga provides a great foundation as I would learn basic postures (asanas), relaxation and breathing techniques, and terminology that is found in almost every other style of yoga.

Sign me up!The newly revamped studio is conveniently located on the 18th floor of Ngee Ann City Takashimaya.

The teacher training is led by Arun and Prakash, who have profound depth of experience in Hatha yoga and also teach classes at the Pure Yoga studios in Ngee Ann City and Chevron House.

Here’s a glimpse at what the training looks like so far:

Prakash explains the eight limbs of yoga.Hatha yoga practice with Arun.Lunch break with a few of my fellow yoginis.

The weekend schedule is pretty full-on, with training from 8am until 6.30pm.Weekday training is from 7pm until 9pm, which is more manageable for working professionals. The training time is well organised and every minute is used purposefully. I look forward to the practice everyday and connecting with the other students attending the course.

Nothing beats a room full of strong, shining yogis, on their mats, inspiring, challenging and sharing in this beautiful practice.